Longing

"Walking down the street
Distant memories
Are buried in the past forever."
"Wind of Change"—Scorpions

The moon was high above the city of Skyloft, the peaceful quiet lulling its' residents to a calm sleep. It had been a long period of worry during the time Zelda had been down on the surface with Link chasing after her. Now that she was safely back above the clouds, the city had thrown their worries to the wind. Link was one of them. He could rest in his bed with ease knowing that his best friend was just rooms away, fast asleep. Like he should be. However, memories and voices were still plaguing his thoughts. Specifically, one very low, and sadistic voice that haunted him since the beginning of his long and dangerous journey.

Look who it is...

The voice that echoed in his mind as much as it did in the final spherical room of the Skyview Temple, where they first had met. Back when Link was still new to the surface world, and where he thought he had Zelda right within his grasp. It was where he found out that he wasn't the only one searching for her, and that he had introduced himself to a new enemy.

Did you really just draw your sword? Foolish boy.

Their first fight, a challenging duel of clashing swords and pain-filled grunts stuck out in his mind. Link had never felt more hatred toward another person in his entire lifetime, even with Groose around to try and make his life harder than it already had been. When he thought about it hard enough, his match ended quicker than he remembered. Perhaps his opponent had purposely lost to only see the skill at which the hero fought?

No. He had just taken up too much of Link's precious time. Zelda had already been long gone by the time the fight was over.

Let me see… No, that's not it. This is so very embarrassing, but I seem to be at a loss for your name.

The second time they had met was in the hot depth of the Earth Temple. He had somehow managed to get atop the dragon sitting at the end of the room, and his voice had carried down into the spot Link was standing. He had apparently forgotten his name; but Link didn't even recall giving it to him to begin with. So at that point, Link's anger toward the man had just manifested even more.

Ah, but something good can still come from this day! I've had all this bottled-up anger smoldering inside me, and now I can release it.

His release came in the form of an enormous fire-spider-thing, which was a pain to defeat. And once again, it was just a waste of time. Zelda had gotten away. Link was getting frustrated. This demon was just interfering with everything! He needed to find Zelda and bring her back to her father. Most of all, he didn't want to spend any more time down on the solid Earth. Oh, how he had wished to return to the clouds above…

I'll make the affair so excruciating, you'll deafen yourself with the shrill sound of your own screams.

Their third meeting had little exchange of words between the two. He was dead set on preventing Zelda from entering the gate found after he had cleared the Lanayru Mining Facility, and even went as far as to create a wall so Link couldn't stop him. Thankfully, Impa had shielding the girl, and they managed to get away. His nemesis had remembered his name this time, but said it in the most distrusting of tones. The more they met, Link realized, the more he was attracted to the sultry voice. This encounter was cut short when Link was threatened for death.

Your incessant buzzing around my head like some irksome gadfly when I'm THIS busy is… Well, it's making me very disagreeable.

In the Ancient Cistern, Link hadn't expected to see him there. Just sitting atop the head of the statue in front of him, head resting against his knuckles. His chuckle was lower than usual, and Link for a moment was afraid that the man was really angered at this point and would kill him right there. And well, he was usually very disagreeable to begin with. While both were searching for Zelda, he was aiming on reviving his king, whatever that meant. With a snap of his fingers, the demon disappeared in a burst of golden diamonds, forcing Link into yet another battle.

We seem to bump into each other time and time again. Oh, it's no coincidence, though, is it? You and I, we're bound by a 'string of fate'.

The Fire Sanctuary's final room was the ground for their second duel. Once again, Link had walked in on the demon staring at the door in front of them, but instead of rambling about Zelda, he began rambling about the paintings above their heads. He said something about being a second Gate of Time (and how the mere idea of it 'filled his heart with rainbows!' which filled Link's heart with butterflies). As if that wasn't enough, Link remembered the long monologue on how the demon was feeling down and sulky because his quest of finding Zelda wasn't going so well.

Lovely, aren't they? You'll find the supple skin of my arms tougher than any armor. Doesn't their shape just leave you…breathless?

(Oh, in fact, Link almost admitted that his entire body left him breathless, but he kept the thought to himself).

The transformation of his arms into armor surprised Link, but that didn't mean that there wasn't going to be a difficult battle. He had been threatened again, the mere idea of him telling the other where the other Gate of Time (seriously, whatever that meant) was what was on the line. There wasn't an answer though. Even if Link at the time knew, he wouldn't tell anyone about it. However at that point, Link noticed, his opponent had begun to lose his mind.

This is all very touching, really, but I'm afraid I'm going to have to cut this emotional moment short.

At long last, Zelda was in Link's arms again. And even though there was a nagging thought in the back of his mind that he wanted someone else, he was happy with this. It was all beautiful until he showed up and ruined the reunion. It was clear that his mind was succumbing into madness, but it was all because of evil and the disgusting desire to bring his king back to life. He had taken Zelda away from Link, and once again, the hero was all alone.

I realize a simple child like you knows nothing of magic, but spells like this take time and a steady hand! Can't you wait quietly like a good boy? HMM?

His voice, which was once beautiful and husky, had a new edge to it that Link personally didn't like. He hated seeing the man that was once so civil (kind of) and calm turn into a monster in front of him. And he was also being commanding, which was also new. Link was already so used to small suggestions and little tasks, but now…now everything was different.

For you, boy, I've prepared a most appropriate and humiliating death. I even have a pet name for it—I call it the 'endless plunge'!

That was the first time Link had ever heard his voice get so angry, so desperate for bloodshed. This was a demon—no, a weapon. Link felt like he didn't even know who this was anymore. So much had changed.

Now, as he lay in bed months later, he could still recall every moment he spent with him. And his name, the way he introduced himself, was probably his most favorite part of everything. It was the symbol of when they had first met. Back when he was still the sarcastic demon lord.

I am the Demon Lord who presides over this land you look down upon, this world you call the surface. You may call me Ghirahim. In truth, I very much prefer to be indulged with my full title: Lord Ghirahim.

Thought: What if Link secretly loved Ghirahim (either platonic or not) and missed him after the events of Skyward Sword?

With this in mind, I wrote this, using direct quotes from the game. There's romance if you squinted hard enough! (even though, really, you don't need to squint that hard, trust me)

Yeah, I should work on my other one-shot so I can finally get back to Searching for the Mask of Majora...

-Eternal White Rose